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Scrapbooking

Keep It Simple – Using Minimal Embellishments for Maximum Impact by Katrina Simeck It's easy to overdo it when creating scrapbook pages.  Follow the old adage of "Keep It Simple Sweetheart" instead. Article rating: 8.67

We’ve all heard the adage…Keep It Simple Sweetheart. When it comes to scrapbooking, many people lose sight of this wisdom. It’s easy to be enticed by the plethora of product that is on the market. It doesn’t stop at cardstock colors and patterned paper choices. Flowers, chipboard, buttons, brads, eyelets, stickers, alphas, ribbon…the choices for embellishments seem endless! When I first started scrapbooking, I had the hardest time choosing what to add to my pages. The result? I just used everything, which made my pages look busy or just plain messy.

By definition, to embellish is to “add ornamental details to.” It’s important to keep that in mind when embellishing your pages…the products that you choose should add detail to the page, but not take center stage. Small details can help to enhance the look of your layouts, and help tie together themes and colors.

I try to apply that same KISS principle to my pages…Keep It Simple Scrapbooker! Here are some easy tips that will help you choose minimal embellishments with maximum impact on your pages:

1. Less is more – This is especially true when it comes to larger embellishments. Chunky buttons, large flowers, and oversized chipboard pieces can quickly overwhelm a page. To avoid this, try balancing larger pieces with a few smaller pieces. In Mugshots, a large button stack is balanced nicely by a group of three small chipboard pieces.

2. Go with the flow – Use embellishments sparingly to help direct the visual “flow” of a layout. Cluttering a layout with too many extras can create visual confusion, and make it difficult for the page to feel focused. In One Silly Girl, small flowers with brads in the center follow the circle elements around the page. By incorporating the embellishments into another page element, I was able to enhance the page without making it feel busy.

3. Party of One – Theme embellishments are often the most overused element in scrapbooking. Remember that theme products tend to stand out more than generic embellishments. You may find that you need to use only one themed product to still get a nice visual effect. In this recipe layout, the small tag with tree
rub-on ties together the apple photos and the apple theme. Additional tree or apple embellishments would have been overpowering.

4. Double Duty – Another way to use embellishments in an overall simple design is to have them pull double duty. Look for stickers, rub-ons, and tags that can also function as journaling or titles. In my Adjectives layout, word stickers serve as both embellishments and journaling.

I hope that these embellishment tips will be helpful the next time you sit down to create a layout!

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